Battle Bond: An Urban Fantasy Dragon Series (Death Before Dragons #2) - Lindsay Buroker Page 0,11

watched.

“No, you don’t, you bastard.” I yanked Fezzik from its holster, flicked the selector to automatic, and sprayed magical bullets at the dragon’s silver-scaled hide.

With a target that big, it was impossible to miss. But I’d seen Zav incinerate bullets, and I expected this dragon to do the same.

His jaws snapped shut, and his head jerked sideways. Again, those silver-blue eyes burned into me. He shifted his path away from the children—and toward me.

He hadn’t incinerated my bullets, but they also didn’t appear to have hurt him. That left me standing out in the open without a means of defending myself.

Arms pumping, I sprinted back toward the windmill, Chopper in one hand and Fezzik in the other. I tried not to think about the beheaded ranger and the fact that I wouldn’t be safe even if I made it inside.

As I ran, I fired over my shoulder. The dragon dove down, talons outstretched. I wasn’t going to make it as far as the ranger had.

I aimed for his eyes, the best I could as I was sprinting in the opposite direction. Maybe they would be a vulnerable spot.

One of my bullets bounced right off his eyelid. He didn’t flinch. Hell.

The talons swept in. I flung myself to the ground, rolling onto my back and slashing upward with Chopper. The blade struck one of the toes on his scaly foot as the talons missed taking my head off by scant inches. Surprisingly, my sword gouged into its target.

The dragon didn’t shriek in pain as his momentum carried him past, but he did grunt, jerking his foot up toward his scaled belly. I leaped up, thinking of taking another stab, but he passed out of my range too quickly. Already, he was flying upward and banking, so he could dive again.

I sprinted into the windmill, running to the far side and ducking under the overhang of the half-destroyed staircase. Sindari rushed inside as the dragon roared. Not with frustration at losing his prey—he knew he hadn’t lost anything—but in preparation.

The sky outside exploded with brilliant orange light as the dragon breathed fire onto the windmill.

5

I crouched beside Sindari at the back of the windmill, fingers wrapped around my fire-protection charm as flames obscured the exit.

The wood frame that I’d broken earlier charred and incinerated in two seconds. Much of the exterior was made from stone, but the heat was so intense that those stones were exploding or crumbling to ash. After twenty seconds under the dragon’s fiery assault, the windmill already felt like an oven inside. My charm protected me from direct flame, but I doubted it would keep me from roasting alive.

Think it’ll be cooler in the basement or worse? I silently asked, trusting Sindari to read my thoughts.

Possibly worse.

At what temperature do magical tigers burst into flame?

The same as half-elves, I suspect.

You better go back to your realm. I tapped the cat figurine. It was so hot to the touch that I jerked my finger away.

If Sindari burned to death here on Earth, would any part of him survive to return home? Or would he die as surely as I would?

I’m not leaving you here alone. Sindari pointed his nose toward the exit, the flames still roiling down at it from the dragon’s maw. I’ll run out. Maybe he’ll chase me again and you can get away.

I don’t think he’s going to fall for that twice.

Smoke filled the interior of the windmill and made me cough. My airways tightened predictably, and I wondered if there was any point to digging out my inhaler. Did it matter if I died of suffocation before being burned to a crisp?

The flames in front of the exit disappeared. I sensed the dragon standing right outside, so I knew we weren’t safe. He was probably inhaling for another round.

“Hey, Dragon!” I called, mopping my brow. “Let’s talk. Why are you kidnapping children? What do you want?”

I expected this attempt at dealing would work about as well as it had with Zav, but maybe I would be wrong. Maybe this was a chatty dragon who was misunderstood and longed for someone to listen to his plight.

A scaled snout came into view, one of those silver-blue eyes just visible at the top of the doorway hole. It gazed at me.

I did my best not to look toward the dead ranger and imagine the dragon chomping my head off. Chopper was in my hand and ready if he tried. I was slightly bolstered that the blade had managed